Clear as Day
by SunnyBunnylove77
Summary: AU. Wally is babysitting little Noel. He promised to tell her a story but the story she wants to hear about Artemis is not one he really wants to tell. Summary is bad, story is better. Please read and review! Rated T because I'm paranoid.


**Clear As Day**

**Second one-shot for Young Justice! This is AU, I changed little things but it's barely noticeable. NO powers. Everyone is normal. Not sure how well this turned out...but I feel I did good. Hope it's not too OOC. **

**I recommend listening to:**

Clear As Day by Scotty McCreery** (Idea for story and title)  
and  
**I Have Loved You For A Thousand Lifetimes by Michael Whalen** (listen to when you see ** that symbol, helps with the mood)**

**Can't believe I wrote this… :O IT'S SO LONG! And you won't believe this but...  
I WROTE IT ALL ON MY IPOD! Why? Inspiration hit and I needed to write this down.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice; it belongs to DC and Cartoon Network. I do not own Clear As Day by Scotty McCreery (IDEA CAME FROM SONG!) The songs listed above I also do not own. I OWN ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! **

* * *

"Wally, when are Noel's parents dropping her off?"

A green eyed, red haired woman walked out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on the apron tied around her waist, and looked at her only son sitting on the couch watching TV, waiting for him to answer.

"Uh...," Wally scratched his head thinking, "They said sometime after two." He turned his head to the left to see what time it was on the clock, "So in like ten minutes or so."

"Wally! You were supposed to give me a twenty minute warning so I could clean the house! You know I hate it when people come in and it looks like a mess!" Mary West through her hands up in the air in exasperation and mumbled something along the lines of lazy and forgetful.

Wally rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and smiled, "Sorry mom...forgot. I'll clean up real quick."

"Yeah, you better clean up! There's no way I can do it in time." Mary shook her head and walked back into the kitchen to get the brownies out of the oven.

The red haired, green eyed, freckled boy sped all around the living room putting papers away, fixing the pillows, folding a blanket and picking up trash here and there. When he was satisfied that the room was clean enough and was sure his mom wasn't going to yell at him anymore, he went into the kitchen to get a brownie. He smelled the delicious aroma and reached his hand out to grab one only to get smacked on the hand.

"Those are for Noel! There are plenty of other snacks for you to consume in the pantry." Mary said keeping an eye on her son.

"Mom!" Wally whined, "Can't I just have one?"

"No, one for you is this whole tray. Maybe later I will make some more for you." Mary said sternly.

"But-" Wally's well planned, thought out excuse was cut off by the doorbell. "I'll get it."

Wally walked over to the front door and opened it to see two adults and a little girl holding her dads hand. The women was short and plump with short black hair, that had grey sprinkled in, wrinkles around her brown eyes and dimples when she smiled. The man was also short with black hair, a thin mustache, brown eyes and square-rimmed glasses. The little girl, who was jumping up and down excitedly, had black hair in pigtails, big round brown eyes that lit up when she saw Wally, and rosy cheeks. She was almost eight years old.

"Wally!" The girl yelled loudly and hugged him around the legs tightly.

"Noel! Hey kiddo!" Wally reached down and picked her up, holding her then turned toward her parents, "Hello Mr. and Mrs. Park, how are you guys?"

The women just smiled, "Wally, how many times do I have to tell you to just call me Jane? We're good though, thanks for asking. Now you're sure it won't be a problem to watch Noel till around seven?"

"Noel is the perfect angel, it won't be a problem. Now go have fun doing whatever it was you were planning to do." Wally smiled, shooing them out of the house.

"Fine. Have fun, behave! Wally tell your parents we said hi. Bye Noel." Jane kissed her daughter on the forehead. Her husband did the same. Noel just smiled and waved.

Wally closed the door after he saw them drive off, "You hungry Noel? Mom made brownies! But she won't let me have any," Wally pouted, "Maybe you can talk her into letting me have some?"

Noel giggled and nodded, "Okay, but only if you tell me a story afterwards! And I get to pick which story!"

"Sounds fair I guess, okay deal!" Wally grinned thinking of the delicious brownies.

"We have to pinky promise first!" Noel stuck out her pinky and waited expectantly. Wally wrapped his pinky around hers and they shook, sealing the deal.

They walked into the kitchen and Noel reached for a brownie, still in Wally's arms, then turned towards Mary and asked, "Can Wally have a brownie too?" She took a bite and had some crumbs around the edge of her mouth.

Mary looked at the adorable child before her and smiled then shifted her gaze to her son and glared. "Only one Wally. No more." She continued glaring as he reached his hand out and grabbed a brownie off the plate.

Wally walked out of the kitchen with Noel carrying the tray of brownies. He set her down on the couch then sat down next to her. Noel put the tray on the table then leaned back into the couch getting comfortable. Both were happily munching on their brownies, Noel was looking at all the pictures on the wall and smiled whenever she recognized someone, which was at almost every photo. Wally had been babysitting Noel since she was six and by now she had met every close friend he had. Noel enjoys Megan and Zatanna's company the most when his friends are over and the girls absolutely adore her. Dick likes to teach her how to pull pranks on him, which Noel always enjoys because it makes her laugh, so he tolerates it even though it's not very fun for him. Kaldur and Rocket think she's cute and Noel likes it when they take her to go swimming at the public pool in his neighborhood. Even Conner enjoys the little girl's company.

She stares at one picture on the wall for a long time with a confused expression on her face. Finally giving up guessing who it is she turns to Wally and asked, "Who's that pretty girl in the picture with you? You look really happy. I really like her hair. How come I haven't met her?" She looks at Wally with her big brown eyes full of curiosity.

Wally looks at the picture she's referring to on the wall and suddenly he finds it hard to swallow the last bite of his brownie. He smiles sadly at Noel. "She's just an old friend. Now how about that story? Which one do you want to hear?" He says trying to change the subject.

But the little girl wouldn't let it go so easily. She stubbornly crossed her arms and said, "Tell me the story about her."

"How about a different story? Like _Beauty and the Beast_? You love that movie!" Wally said, trying to get the little girl to change her mind.

"I've seen that a lot though. And you pinky promised!" Noel pouted.

Wally sighs knowing she won't let it go any time soon. He pulls her onto his lap and she looks expectantly at him, ready for the story. "I can't guarantee it will be a happy story..." He warns.

"I want to hear it; if you have three pictures of her on the wall then she's important." Wally smiled at her logic then nodded.

"Okay well, the story takes place two years ago when I was a senior in high school. A little while before I started babysitting you..."

* * *

**(Two years ago)**

Wally West was a tall and slightly muscular red headed eighteen year old with freckles sprinkled over his cheeks. He was a senior in high school and currently was playing on his school's football team as the wide receiver. Wally glanced at the clock on the wall of his class room and counted the seconds waiting for the bell to ring. When the beautiful sound rang through the halls, Wally was one of the first to run out of his classroom. Walking down the hall, he waved hi to people he knew on his way to football practice. Tonight was the big game against East Gotham and he really wanted to win. Last time the school won against them was fifteen years ago and Wally wanted to change that before he graduated.

Wally stopped by his locker to put his books away before continuing down the hall to the locker room. Right before he closed his locker door someone came up beside him. He looked to his right to see a tan, tall, long blonde haired girl with beautiful gray-blue eyes smiling at him.

"Hey."

"Hey Beautiful. Miss me?" Wally grinned at his girlfriend. He still couldn't believe his luck when they got together on New Years in his sophomore year. He thought she would never go out with him but was very glad to be proven wrong. Their two year anniversary was coming up in three weeks.

She snorted, "Hardly. I just saw you at lunch," Then winked, "You better win tonight. I can't be seen dating someone who can't win an important football game. It's bad for my rep." She wrapped her arms around Wally's neck and his automatically went around her waist, pulling her close.

"I have a good feeling about this game Artemis! I know we're going to win this time." Wally smiled excitedly then added with a wink, "I'll be waiting for my congratulation kiss after the game."

"That confident, huh?" She smirked.

"You know it babe." Wally leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss on the lips.

"C'mon Wally! We're going to be late!" Dick Grayson, Wally's best friend and also the quarterback, walked up holding hands with his girlfriend Zatanna. "Coach isn't going to be too happy if we are late for the third practice in a row."

"Shit. Coach is going to kill us! We can't be benched bro! Not for this game." Wally looked to Artemis, "Sorry babe, I got to run." He quickly kissed her, grabbed his backpack off the floor and started running down the hallway with Dick to get to practice.

Artemis just sighed and shook her head. "Boys," She muttered.

Zatanna looped her arm through hers and laughed, "Yeah, but they are our boys. They'd be lost without us."

Artemis just laughed as they walked down the hall.

* * *

Wally walked out of the locker room very energetic and ready to start practice. Dick and Conner, who was the fullback, were already on the field stretching their arms and legs. Wally jogged up and joined them.

"Took you long enough. I stalled Coach, he was looking for you." Conner said when he saw me.

"Thanks man, I owe you one! I was caught up with Artemis." Wally said.

Dick made a whipped sound and started to laugh. Wally smacked him on the back of the head.

"I wouldn't be laughing, _Dicky-poo_!" Wally mimicked Zatanna's voice.

Dick glared in response. "Hey! She only called me that once... And only Zee can say it," Dick said defensively.

Conner just rolled his eyes and glanced over at the cheerleaders where Megan, his girlfriend, was on top of the pyramid. His eyes softened slightly at the sight of her. Although Wally thought that was disgustingly sweet he could also understand, he and Artemis were practically together all the time and he probably looked the same when looking at her.

Conner looked at Wally and Dick seriously, "Just focus on the game tonight."

Suddenly Coach approached the group. He was a big guy with tan skin, huge muscles, a bushy mustache, bushy eyebrows, and stubble on his chin, brown hair that was always hidden under his hat and blue eyes. His eyes narrowed at Wally and asked, "Where have you been son? Do you want to sit on the benches? This is an important game! We need all of our top players!"

Wally smiled nervously. "Sorry Coach, I was talking to my teacher about a homework assignment I didn't understand," He lied smoothly.

Coach just glared at him suspiciously. "Right... Don't let it happen again!" Then he gestured to all three of us and yelled; "Now you boys go practice. We started five minutes ago! Let's go! Let's go! Let's go! Move it, move it!"

The three boys jogged off to the middle of the field and Coach yelled after them, "I don't see those legs moving fast enough West!" Wally just groaned in annoyance and wished the game would come sooner.

* * *

Finally the time was here and Wally was just literally bouncing with anticipation. He could feel it in his bones, after fifteen years he knows tonight is the night they will finally win against East Gotham. The locker room was filled with shouts and loud noises as everyone was getting fired up. Wally turned to his best friend and said, "You ready bro? I'm so pumped!"

Dick just smirked and threw his jersey on over his pads. He checked his phone then said, "Hey Wally, Zee says that she and Artemis are outside the locker room. They want to wish us luck."

Wally followed Dick outside and saw his girlfriend in a red shirt with white letters, which says their school name on it, black skinny jeans and her long blonde hair in its usual ponytail. He couldn't help but think of how beautiful she looked. She just smirked, admiring how he looked in his uniform.

"Hey." She said.

"Hey. Come to wish me luck?" Wally grinned then added, "Not that I'll need it."

She just smacked his arm in response before kissing him roughly, "Try not to break any bones."

"Aw, didn't know you cared so much Arty." His grin grew bigger.

"All I'm saying is that you're no fun when you complain and whine after a cut or sore muscle. I don't want to know what you're like with a broken bone. I can imagine the horror now and it's not pretty." She smirked. She would never admit it, not even to herself, but he knew she really did worry about him whenever he got tackled to the ground.

"I'll be fine." He reassured.

"Hey, I hate to ruin this cute moment but Artemis we have to go get to our seats and boys you need to go. The game is about to start." Zatanna said. She grabbed Artemis's hand and blew a kiss to Dick before running off. Wally and Dick stared after them for a bit before heading back into the locker room.

* * *

Artemis and Zatanna managed to get great seats near the front. The place was packed with students, teachers, and families. They could see Megan cheering with the other cheerleaders. When the pair cheered Wally and Dick turned and waved at them whenever they were off the field, which wasn't very often.

It was half time and the score was tied at twenty. Both teams were here to win. Even people with little football knowledge could tell this game was intense and important to both teams. Zatanna freaked out during the second quarter, three minutes before halftime, when Dick was tackled to the ground by a huge guy. He slipped past Conner, who was blocking three people at once, and pounced on the unsuspecting quarterback. After he didn't get up for a few minutes, Zatanna was standing and was very focused on the field. She was literally saying a chant and willing him to move. Artemis was whispering comforting words, trying to reassure the girl. Both girls sighed with relief when he sat up. Artemis was watching Wally, who was trying to hold back Conner from attacking the guy who tackled Dick. He wasn't having much luck but when Conner saw that Dick was sitting up, he let Wally pull him away. Artemis turned to her friend and saw she was sitting down again with a small smile on her face.

Artemis took that moment to go to the concession stand to buy a few hotdogs and sodas for the pair of them. Zatanna gratefully took the hotdog and soda from her friend, food always helped calm her down.

The rest of the game was pretty uneventful with the score getting higher on both sides, till the last 3 minutes. Her worst nightmares came true when she saw Dick throw the ball to Wally, who was wide open. He ran and dodged the players trying to stop him. It looked like he might score a touchdown then the big guy, who tackled Dick earlier, came straight towards Wally at full speed. He jumped out of the way and it looked like he was in the clear before suddenly the guy had a hold of his red jersey and yanked him down before tackling him. Artemis gasped and stood, she held her breath and, just like Zee did earlier, was willing him to get up. Well willing him to get up after the three hundred plus pound man on top of him moved. When the big guy did finally stand up he was immediately tackled back down by Conner, who had no one holding him back this time. Wally just laid there for what seem like forever to Artemis.

Dick walked up and knelt down beside Wally; he was gently shaking him and snapping his fingers in front of his face. She got scared when the medics came on the field and were kneeling next to him. The whole field and the people in the stands were silent as they waited, there were only a few people whispering here and there. But when she saw Wally slowly sit up she couldn't help but cheer loudly and soon people were following her example. The cheers got louder when they noticed that Wally was tackled into the end zone, scoring their team some points. The score was now fifty-eight to fifty-two, their school was winning. She blew Wally a kiss when he looked at her while limping to the sidelines. He pretended to catch it and clutched it near his heart. She just smiled; glad he was okay and not seriously injured.

The game ended a few minutes later. The crowd was so loud as they were chanting "We won!" There were whistles, shouts, screams and people banging and stomping on the bleachers. Zatanna grabbed her arm and led them out of the celebrating crowd.

* * *

Wally couldn't believe it. They won. They actually won against East Gotham! That hasn't been down in so long and Wally was proud to have scored the last touchdown. He almost thought it was worth the pain in his back and leg and the headache. The team quickly changed and ran out of the locker room, eager to go celebrate.

Dick came up and patted him on the back with a big smile then screamed, "We won! Hey one of the guys on the team is throwing a party to celebrate. You up for it man?"

"Of course I am! The Wallman is always ready to party!" Wally tried to hide the pain in his back where Dick touched him.

"You ok?" He asked concerned.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine." He waved it off then shouted to Conner, "Hey Con! Party tonight! You going?"

He nodded. "Megan wants to go."

Wally just shook his head. Conner did whatever Megan asked him too; no matter what it was he always acquiesced.

Zatanna and Artemis came up then with big smiles on their faces. Zatanna hugged Wally then wrapped her arms around Dick's neck. "I'm so proud of you!" Dick just had this cheesy smile on his face when she said that.

Artemis just smiled at the cute couple then turned her attention towards him. She smacked him on the arm hard, "You idiot!" But before he could make a retort she attacked him with her lips. "How bad is your back? That was a nasty tackle."

Wally saw a concern twinkle in her eyes but decided against commenting on it. He was in enough pain already; he didn't want to add to it. "I'm fine, really. I just need some aspirin."

She eyed him suspiciously before accepting his answer. "Okay. So are you going to the party tonight?"

"Of course! How can I miss it? I mean technically I won us the game." Wally smirks and winks. She just laughs at how much of a dork he is. "And obviously you're my date."

"Oh I am? I should feel honored right? Well sorry to burst your bubble but someone already asked me and I sort of said yes." Artemis manages to keep a straight face but her eyes give it away that she's joking.

"Oh and who is my competition?" He rests his forehead against hers and just stares into her blue-grey eyes.

Artemis can't help but stare back into his green eyes. The smile she was trying to hide comes out and she pecks his lips. She backs away and takes his hand, tugging him down the hallway towards the parking lot. "Let's go. You need to shower."

"Hey! This is the scent of victory." Wally proudly says.

"Well the scent of victory needs to go or you can find another date." She smirks.

"Where's the nearest shower?" Wally quickly says.

* * *

They show up to the party two hours later with Dick, Zatanna, Kaldur and Raquel, or Rocket as they like to call her.

Kaldur and Rocket have been dating for a year now and things seem pretty serious between them. But Kaldur balances out Rocket's outgoing personality and they make a cute couple.

Megan runs up dragging Conner behind her. She has a big smile on her face when she sees us. "Dick! Wally! Congratulations on winning!" She gives each of us a big hug. Then she gives a concerned look to Wally and Dick. "Are you guys injured?"

"No, I'm fine." Wally said.

"Don't worry Meg. All part of the job." Dick smiles.

A fast song starts playing and Megan squeals, "Oh! I love this song!" She drags Conner to the dance floor but not before looking over her shoulder and saying, "See you guys around!"

Kaldur and Rocket excuse themselves and they walk over to the food. Dick and Zatanna disappeared soon after to who knows where.

"Wow. That must be a record time for our friends to ditch us." Artemis laughs.

"Can't say I'm complaining. I have you all to myself now." Wally grins and wraps his arms around her waist. A slow song starts playing and Wally starts slow dancing with Artemis. She relaxes in his arms and rests her head on his shoulder.

"Are you really okay Wally? That guy tackled you really hard earlier. Don't be all macho and tell me the truth." Artemis spoke softly, enjoying being held and swaying to the slow music.

Wally sighed slowly. "Seriously Artemis I'm fine. There is just some soreness in my back and in my leg. I had a headache earlier but the aspirin took it away." Wally stopped dancing and caressed her face with both hands, making her look him in the eye. "I'm fine." He kissed her softly.

"Fine, fine. But no complaining tomorrow!" She said.

"C'mon! Let's get some fresh air." Wally took her hand and led her through the house to the back porch.

The porch was deserted since everyone was inside. Despite it being really loud inside it was surprisingly very quite outside. There were only a few pieces of furniture out here; some chairs and a table. Artemis walked over to the railing and rested her arms on it. Wally came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. For a while they just stood there staring at the view from the backyard. It overlooked a lake and a lot of trees. The sun had almost set and the sky was colorful with hues of pinks, oranges and yellows. There were some dark clouds doting the sky threatening to rain. Wally rested his chin on her shoulder, humming a random tune. Artemis sighed and closed her eyes feeling very calm and at ease.

Wally removed one of his hands from his waist and put it in his pocket. After searching for a few minutes he found the item he was looking for and held it in his hand.

"Now here me out on this. No interrupting." He waited for her to nod and when she did he continued to whisper in her ear, "I've liked you since the day we've met, did you know that? I thought you were a real spitfire. I think my crush grew more when you threw your chili cheese fries in my face." This earned a chuckle from Artemis. "I know we're too young for marriage but I really do see my life with you." At this point Wally opened his palm to reveal a sliver ring which earned a gasp from Artemis. "Now don't freak out! Let me continue. This isn't an engagement ring, it's a promise ring. I would love to spend the rest of my life with you Artemis and this promise ring is my promise to you that I will always love you. And hopefully it will be a promise to someday marry you, maybe like in five years from now or maybe in ten years. The bottom line is that I love you. Will you accept my promise Arty?"

Artemis just had tears in her eyes and said, "You would really want to spend the rest of your life with me? What if I'm not worth it? I come with a lot of emotional baggage Wally. And we've only been dating for two years... What if you grow tired of me? No one sticks around for long in my life."

Wally kissed her cheek, his arms still wrapped around her waist. "Arty... I love you. And believe me I could never get tired of you. You never let me get away with anything and you keep me on my toes. We may have only been dating for two years but it's been the best two years of my life." He rested his forehead on hers then whispered very softly, "Please just take the ring. You are worth fighting for."

Artemis just smiled. "Put the ring on the chain of my necklace Wallman."

Wally stayed still for a bit. He thought his ears were hearing things at first, then a grin slowly crept its way onto his face and it got bigger every second. "Really? You're serious? You're not just saying that to make me happy? Are you sure?"

She rolled her eyes. "Are you trying to talk me out of it?"

"No, no, no. I'm just in shock here. The good kind of shock that is." His grin got even bigger, if possible, than before and he undid her necklace and slipped the ring on the chain.

Artemis fingered the ring with a small smile on her face and a far off look in her eyes. Than as an afterthought said, "Let's keep this between us for now. If Megan finds out you know she will tell the whole school and everyone will know by Monday. I'd rather avoid all of that. But if you feel the need to at least tell Dick than that's fine."

"As you wish babe." Wally kissed her. Artemis turned around in his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck. She deepened the kiss but was interrupted by laughter and a bright flash.

The two separated to see Zatanna and Dick hiding their smiles and laughter behind their hand. Zatanna had a camera in hand which explained the flash.

"Sorry to interrupt. But it was too good of an opportunity to resist." Zatanna giggled. Then she took another picture, this time the two were ready and smiled. Wally had one hand resting on her waist and Artemis hand both arms wrapped around his waist in a side hug. Wally then took the camera and snapped a few at Dick and Zatanna then aimed it at Artemis. She sat on the railing with her ankles crossed and one hand resting on the railing and the other holding the ring in her fist. She had a huge smile on.

That's when Zatanna noticed the ring. She squealed loudly and tackled her best friend with a hug. Artemis was confused as to why her friend suddenly freaked out.

"Oh my gosh! You guys are engaged!" Zatanna squealed again and clapped her hands together while jumping.

"No, not really. It's just a promise ring Zee." Artemis said, trying to calm down her friend.

"Aw that is so cute! When did that happen?" Zatanna asked.

"Just now. You walked out here after he gave me the ring." Artemis explained.

Her mouth formed an 'O'. "Oh! And we're interrupting! Oh sorry! C'mon Dick let's go."

"Congrats guys." Dick smiled at the pair. They just waved. Before they left Zatanna looked over her shoulder and said "I get to be Maid of Honor! No objections! And I promise not to say anything." Then they were alone again.

Artemis laughed and Wally shook his head. Her laughter was cut off when her phone buzzed. She looked at it and frowned. Thunder sounded in the distance and some drops of rain fell. Wally frowned when he saw her face. He quickly led her inside so they could escape the rain before asking, "Hey what's wrong?"

"It's my sister. She just texted me that she's here to pick me up." She frowned.

"What? Why?" Wally asked, confused.

"I don't know. But I should go." She quickly kissed him on the lips. "I'll call you tomorrow." Artemis turned around and left.

Wally went to go find Dick.

* * *

Artemis got into her sisters' probably stolen truck. The rain started to come down harder and she was soaked by the time she got into the car. She looked at her sister and asked, "Why are you here?"

"Can't I just see my little sister?" Jade said a little too innocently.

"Not really, no. What's up Jade?" Artemis eyed her sister warily.

Jade ignored the question and locked her eyes on the road. Artemis could barely see five feet in front of her and the fog from all the moisture didn't help the visibility. They sat in silence for a while before Jade said, "Mom is sick."

"So why did you come get me? It's just a cold." Artemis said.

Jade chanced a glance at her sister. "Not that kind of sick, little sister. She has cancer. She is in the hospital right now. I found her collapsed on the floor. So I came and grabbed you after I found out. I'm not that bad of a person Arty."

Artemis couldn't believe her ears; unconsciously her hand wrapped itself around her necklace where the ring sat. Jade noticed and had a Cheshire Cat grin on. "Nice piece of jewelry. Looks like we Crocks have a thing for redheads, huh?" She laughed lazily.

Artemis knew that she was referring to Wally and her sister's not-so-secret boyfriend Roy Harper. Both were redheads. Artemis saw two bright lights coming towards them and gasped, "Jade! Look out!"

But the roads were too slippery and her vision went black.

* * *

****  
**Wally got the worst phone call later that night. The hospital called him saying that Artemis was in an accident and unconscious. He quickly rushed over there. He was scared out of his mind and hoped she was okay. But a nagging feeling inside of him told him a different story. Somehow Wally knew that Artemis really wasn't okay. When he arrived at the hospital he went to the front desk and demanded to see her. The receptionist gave him the room number.

The first thing Wally noticed was the police outside the room. They blocked him from going inside to see his girlfriend. When he asked why, one cop with shoulder length blond hair, blue eyes and stubble on his chin said "I'm sorry sir. They tried everything. She died thirty minutes after the paramedics brought her here."

Wally refused to hear what they were saying. If he would have gotten here ten minutes sooner he might've been able to see her. Tears sprung to his eyes and he managed to choke out, "H-How? W-What happened?"

"There was little visibility due to the heavy rain and fog. A car swerved into the other lane and hit them. I'm sorry. She's dead. Her sister is in a coma. The guy driving the other car is in surgery right now, when he gets out we'll ask him some more questions. For now that's all we know."

The two cops walked past him but the blond cop stopped after a few steps and turned back towards Wally. He held out a necklace with an arrow charm hanging down, next to the charm was the promise ring. "They found this on her. Would you like to keep it? I'm guessing you're her fiancé?"

Wally just nodded numbly and reached out to take the ring and necklace. He just stared at it in his open palm. The cop put his hand on his shoulder and gave a comforting squeeze. "I'm truly sorry for your loss. It's not easy losing someone close, especially someone you love." The cop removed his hand and walked away with his partner.

Wally was still staring at the ring in his hand and backed up to lean against the wall. Tears started to escape his eyes as what happened started to truly sink in. Awful choked up sounds erupted from his throat as he thought of the future he will never get to have. He will never get to propose to Artemis. He will never get to marry her. He will never be able to have a daughter or son who looks like her. He will never sit with her on a front porch growing old watching their grandchildren play in the yard. The worst thought of all was never seeing her again.

An arm wrapped itself around his shoulders and he looked up to see that it was Zatanna. Dick was on the other side of him. They were both sitting on the floor next to him and he could barely recall sitting on the floor in the first place. His legs probably gave out when he was thinking of the future he will never have.

Dick and Zatanna didn't say anything; they just let him cry out all his tears. Both were silently crying and giving him a comforting hug. And they just sat there, grieving, for what seemed like forever.

* * *

**(Back to the present)**

Wally finished his tale with a few tears in his eyes. He clutched the necklace under his shirt unconsciously. Noel noticed and asked, "Is that the necklace?"

Wally finally noticed what he was doing and took the necklace out from under his shirt. Noel sniffled a bit when she traced a small finger over the ring. "That's the best story I ever heard. You were her prince charming." Noel said with teary eyes. "It was really sad though."

Wally laughed humorlessly. "Life is too short kiddo. Never be scared to do anything in life."

"But what happened to her sister? And her mom? Are they alright?" She asked.

"Her mom, Paula, beat the cancer. She's in a wheelchair now because they had to amputate her left leg and right foot. If her sister Jade hadn't found her then it could've been a lot worse. Jade on the other hand... Disappeared. She checked herself out of the hospital one night and was never seen again. She disappeared like the Cheshire cat."

Noel nodded and got off his lap to get a better view of the three pictures on the living room wall. Wally got up and picked Noel up again so she could see them better. They were the three pictures from the party. The one Zatanna took without them knowing when they were kissing, the one she took with him and Artemis smiling and the last one was the picture Wally took. It was the one where she was sitting on the railing clutching the same necklace he was wearing. That was his favorite one. He has never seen her happier or more energetic than at that moment and it was forever immortalized in film. Noel gently touched the picture and said, "She was very pretty. Like a real life princess." She turned her head to look at Wally. "I want to be like her someday!"

Wally genuinely laughed and smiled. He kissed her on the top of her head and said, "You will be someday. Just don't let anyone ever tell you, you can't do something. Artemis did things her own way. Just follow your heart, kiddo." Wally put her down. "C'mon Noel! Let's see if we can sneak some ice cream to go with the rest of the brownies."

The little girl started to run towards the kitchen. "Last one there is a rotten egg!"

"Cheater!" He called after her. He looked at the picture of Artemis again and smiled faintly. He'll see her again someday and with that comforting thought he raced into the kitchen to get the ice cream he promised.

"Wallace West!" Mary yelled when she notice the missing ice cream and empty tray of brownies later that night.

* * *

_"...There ain't one second times erased_

_Every detail is still in place_

_You hold to what you love_

_Some things never fade_

_And that night's still clear as day..."_

* * *

**Well? How'd I do? Sorry for any grammar errors or spelling errors, I really quickly reread it to fix anything so I might've missed a few things. And sorry for the OOC-ness but it is AU so can you forgive me? Also I know almost nothing about football so don't be too harsh if I got something wrong.**

**Reviews are very welcome! Oh I want to know, did anyone listen to the song while reading? Did it go with the mood?**

**Note: I do not own the lyrics at the end; it's from the song Clear as Day. **

**Peace!**

**~Cally**


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